A diplomat from Timbuktu, Mali, who had arrived to participate in the first ever World Tourism Encounter of City and Local Governments United, was so smitten with the work ethic of the fisherwomen of the Yucatán that he decided to ask permission to take one home with him.

“Ï have four wives, but the law of my country allows me to have six. I would like to ask authorization from the governor of Yucatán (Ivonne Ortega) to marry a fisherwoman. I’m surprised that they get up at three in the morning to fish and return to take care of their families.”

The delegates who had gathered for the event originally thought that Dédéou Traoré, the diplomat from Mali, was joking, but he made his remarks in all seriousness.

So far, there has been no response from either the governor or a fisherwoman.